San Diego Bus Route 101

I can never read the bus route on my blackberry for the 101 bus. So I decided to post them here. today I need times that depart from Carlsbad going south and Del Mar Fair going north.
Carlsbad on Sat
5:14
5:46
6:16
6:46
7:16
7:46
8:16
8:46
9:16
9:47
10:17
10:47
11:17
11:47
12:18
12:48
1:18
1:48
2:18
2:48
3:18
3:47
4:17
4:47
5:17
5:47
6:47
7:47
8:47

Del Mar Fair North:
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7:32am (other buses but probably don't need.
Noon
12:36
1:01
1:37
2:02
2:37
3:02
3:36
4:00
4:35
5:00
5:35
6:01
6:35
6:58
7:33
7:57
8:57
9:57

Surfing Ebay in the Mentawaii Islands

Surfing e-bay was a pretty interesting experience. It was definitely a case where ignorance was bliss but in the end I paid the price for my ignorance. What I did not know was the tide was on the way out and when it get’s low, the inside gets extremely shallow. So the first wave I caught was really fun, I got a little barrel and kicked out on the inside. The second wave was a different story. I dropped in, raced down the line did a turn and what I should have done there was kick out. Instead I went looking for another section and found the reef. The wave started sucking up on the reef and I really only had 2 options, try to fall flat, or try to kick out and get sucked over the falls. I jumped off my board ad tried to lay as flat as I could. I did not bounce off the reef, but I did get dragged across it. I first kicked, then I felt my back drag across it and then I attempted to grab the reef (to slow my momentum) and sliced my hand open. When I finally came to rest, I quickly jumped on my board and tried to get off the reef. My first attempt to duck dive sent my surfboard straight into the reef. I realized then that I just need paddle sideways to get off the reef rather than back out into the lineup. Only problem was I could see the reef exposed around the edges of the reef. To be honest I am not exactly sure how I managed to get off the reef w/o any new major damage to me. I guess the dings and gouges in my surfboard tell part of the story.

When I got back to the Kandui Resort, I attempted to repair my surfboard with some solar-res. Shortly there after, I realized that surfboard ding surfboard dingrepair was not one of my specialties. I was definitely handicapped as the solar-res was already partially congealed, but at that point I realized it was time to retire the surfboard. Before I left on the trip I buckled the board in 2 places. Luckily I had a friend who fixed it up. Then while on trip I buckled it again and had an elegant boat exit where I almost pulled my leash through my tail. With all of these holes, dings, creases and repairs already done to my surfboard, my friends convinced me that it was not worth ti to repair my surfboard and I should just leave it in Kandui. So I did. We all signed the board and left it for the Kandui staff.

Eating Food in Padang

I will be honest, I am a pretty picky eater so traveling abroad can sometimes be a challenge for me. While navigating the streets of Padang, I did not see very many familiar food signs. In fact the only 2 things I saw that even remotely resembled food were street vendors and KFC. Luckily the hotel we stayed at had a restaurant with non-indigenous food offerings. However on our trip home, I was not so lucky.

Just before we left the Kandui Resort, a number of people told us to be sure we ate at a certain location (unfortunately I can't remember the name). What I do remember is our guide Rudi, said it would be to crowded and that we would have to go somewhere else. By his description we were going to go to a restaurant. As it turns out, a restaurant is simply a street vendor set infront of a garage like area with seating. It appeared as though the only reason they needed to go to the back was to get more dishes. All of the actual food was stored on the carts.

The menu at this place was a single laminated page with 2 columns. Not sure why we even bothered to get menus as Rudi suggested that we should only consider eating the fried rice. We asked about a number of other things, but he continued to tell us to just eat the fried rice. This concerned me so I chose to pass on the meal.

When the food arrived, there was a thin brown fleshy looking item draped over the top of the rice. My friend Shea and I looked at each other in concern as we could not quite tell what it was. We both thought it was supposed to be the chicken, as we could not figure out what else it could be. Even still if it was chicken, it was way to thin and it as definitely not a color that we would ever associate with chicken. After a short while, we realized the item on the top was the egg and the chicken was actually chopped up in the rice. So at this point you may be wondering how did people fare after that meal... Well I can not say for sure this meal was the cause, but 8 people ate for a total of $9 USD and a more than 1/2 of them ended up with liquid stools for the next week.

So in traveling to Kandui Padang was the only place I struggled with the food. If I were to go back to Padang, I think I would definitely pack some food. But that's just me. I would probably be the exact opposite of Anthony Bourdain.

Traveling to the Kandui in the Mentawaii Islands

When I tell people about my trip to the Mentawaii Islands, they all seem to cringe when I tell them my total travel time. It was definitely long, but I have had far worse experiences with far shorter trips. There were 2 factors that made this trip easier, one was the plane I took the other was the careful travel planning by one of my friends. Rather than traveling the entire distance to Kandui at once, he planned a couple of stops. This was to ensure all of our luggage made it and to help us minimize jet lag upon arrival at the Kandui Resort. Our travel itinerary was as follows:

- Depart LAX for Kuala Lumpur. I recommend Singapore Air Flight 37 executive economy)
- Stay in Kuala Lumpur for a day or 2
- Experience the city and visit the Petronas Towers.
- Depart Kuala Lumpur for Padang
- Meet up with our host Rudi and prepare for the journey to the Kandui Resort
- Depart Padang via Speed Boat, Ferry or Plane.
- Arrive at the Kandui Resort

Not only does this make the journey more bearable, it also is one of your only chances to experience the culture. Life on Kandui is phenomenal, but since nobody permanently lives there, there is not much culture to experience on the island (except for the day that the Mentawaiian Shaman visit the island).

Jenessa Couron and Vincent French Married

Did you hear that Vincent French married Jenessa Couron?

Well believe it or not on June 21, 2008 Vincent French and Jenessa Couron tied the knot. Congratulations you 2.

Los Penasquitos Canyon Mountain Bike Trail

Went for another mountain bike ride today.

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Here is a graph of our change in elevation on the ride. The loop was just over 13 miles and we climbed 1,400ft twice.

How to pop popcorn with a cell phone

People are always talking about the dangers of cell phone use and my wife is always telling me to not put my cell phone in my pocket. Not sure if this video is legit... but it makes me think twice about putting my cell phone in my pocket. If a cell phone can do this to a popcorn kernal, I would hate to see what it can do to me.